Maryland SoccerPlex Year End Report Executive Summary

This year was unlike any other in SoccerPlex history. Facing a pandemic, the SoccerPlex was closed for large portions of the year. We started the year in a traditional manner with indoor soccer and minimal activities outdoors during the winter. Prior to our outdoor fields opening for the spring the facility was shut down be Executive Order from Governor Hogan. We lost the entirety our spring season both indoor and outdoor. We subsequently lost all spring and summer tournaments at the facility and were forced to play a modified fall soccer season. For the year we were able to hold only a single tournament, the Bethesda Premier Cup – Girls Weekend. During the summer camp season, all externally managed camps were cancelled. SoccerPlex managed camps operated at a reduce capacity with less than 50% of our capacity reached on average.

List of Lost Events Outdoors • SAM Rec Spring Season • SAM Select Spring Season • Cherry Blossom Soccer Tournament • Maryland State Cup Preliminary Rounds and Finals • Potomac Memorial Day • Mid-Atlantic Cup • Embassy Cup • Laxin Out Loud • FLG in 3D Lacrosse • Washington Spirit Home Matches (4) • ATD U23 Tournament • FitRec Kickball • EDP Fall Kickoff • August Cup • Rush for the Cup • Discovery Cup • Bethesda Premier Cup Boys Weekend

Indoors • Fall Home Show • Spring Home Show • MCPS College Fair • Maryland Flames Tournaments (5) • Bump Set Drink Leagues (Spring, Summer, Fall) • MVSA Volleyball Tournaments (3) • CHRVA Volleyball Tournaments (3) • Big Shots Basketball • Urban Youth Basketball • Big Time Hoops Basketball • Girl Power Expo • Harvest Fest

Field Work We conducted routine field maintenance during the entire shutdown period. This, combined with limited use throughout the year, allowed us to return the fields to excellent condition. We paused out drainage installation program due to budget cuts from the pandemic. This program is scheduled to resume in 2022.

Fieldhouse Updates During the shutdown, our staff took advantage of the time to conduct thorough cleaning and deferred maintenance on several projects that are not easily accomplished during operating hours. This included painting, plumbing repairs, as well as the conversion of all interior and exterior lights to LEDs. This will have a positive impact on our sustainability mission. We are currently exploring the conversion of parking lot lights to LED. Through our new sponsorship partner Adventist HealthCare we updated all the signage for the fieldhouse including the roof top sign replacement.

Washington Spirit The Washington Spirit were scheduled to play 4 games at the SoccerPlex in what will be their final season in Maryland. Due to the pandemic, they were unable to play any games at the facility. The Spirit played most of the season in a “bubble” environment in Utah before returning to the SoccerPlex in June o resume training. The Washington Spirit will vacate the SoccerPlex completely before the end of the year.

SAM The entire Spring season for SAM was cancelled due to the pandemic. In the Fall, we played a modified season by combining both the SAM Rec and SAM Select leagues into a single league. We also only played small, sided games regardless of age group, to help mitigate risk from COVID while playing.

DMV United During the pandemic it was clear that the youth soccer industry was not prepared for the situation from a financial or organizational standpoint. Matt Libber the SoccerPlex Executive Director, along with Lisa Frate, then Executive Director of Bethesda Soccer, and Tommy Park, Executive Director of Alexandria Soccer Club, started DMV United. DMV United is an informal cooperative group made up of 90+ soccer and sports organizations that joined together to share resources, information, and ideas. We held weekly calls for the first few months of the pandemic and have now moved to quarterly calls. We are transitioning the group from pandemic focused topics to more general topics such as coaching education, referee recruitment, access to sports, and other topics.

Maryland Sports Commission Return to Play Committee Matt Libber chaired the Facilities Committee for the Maryland Sports Commission Return to Play Committee. This committee drafted a report for the Governor that outlined the guidelines for sports to return during the pandemic. These guidelines were adopted into the Governor’s reopening plans.

Red Cross Blood Drives. The SoccerPlex supported two blood drives for the Red Cross in September due to very low supplies from COVID.

Testing Site The SoccerPlex worked with the Department of Health and Human Services and MNCPPC to setup a mobile testing site at the SoccerPlex during two weekends in October while we had activities on campus. DHHS stated both testing sites were successful. Community Involvement Activities Affiliations Matt Libber, Executive Director is involved in following community and professional organizations: • Destination Germantown Working Group • Board Member, Montgomery County CVB • Member, Team Maryland • Board Member, Sports Event and Tourism Association • Board Member, Baltimore 2026 World Cup Bid Committee • Member, United Soccer Coaches • Member, US Lacrosse • Member, Archbishop Curley High School Capital Committee

COVID Related Taskforce • Maryland Sports Commission Return to Play Committee

o Facilities Subcommittee Chair • Maryland Department of Commerce Tourism Recovery Taskforce • Montgomery County Economic Recovery Task Force - Hospitality, Culture, Entertainment & Recreation Workgroup

Activities/Events • Provide space at no fee for coaching and referee education classes • The Adventist HealthCare Fieldhouse is a registered county emergency shelter • Supported Toys for Tots, One Warm Coat, and Manna Food collection drives • Continue support as a collection site for Leveling the Playing Field a Silver Spring based charitable organization • Provided facility space at no fee to Upcounty Community Resources for Developmental Challenge Adults (UCR)

Scholarships Due to the loss of the Spring season and a modified fall season we did not provide scholarships for our SAM programming in 2020

5% Allocation With the loss of the full Spring season and only a modified fall season we open the SoccerPlex up to all that needed space. This included those with long term contacts, those with no standing agreements, and several groups within the county that do not traditionally use the SoccerPlex. Since the SoccerPlex was better suited than most venues to support sports with additional safety measures and amble room for social distancing we made it a priority to accommodate as many end users as possible.